Washing machine including large detergent case

ABSTRACT

A washing machine is disclosed. The washing machine includes a detergent receiving part, a supply pipe communicating with a water supply pipe and supplying wash water, an on-off valve between the detergent receiving part and the supply pipe, and a controller opening or closing the on-off valve corresponding to a proceeding washing cycle to supply a preset amount of detergent to the supply pipe.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a washing machine and, moreparticularly, to a washing machine including a large detergent casewhich enables a plurality of washing operations by inputting a detergentonce to the detergent case.

2. Description of the Related Art

In general, a washing machine includes a tub disposed inside a cabinetand receiving wash water, a drum rotatably mounted inside the tub andreceiving laundry, a drive unit disposed inside the tub and connected tothe drum to rotate the drum, a water supply unit supplying the washwater into the tub, and a discharge unit discharging the wash wateroutside the cabinet after washing operation is completed.

The water supply unit includes a water supply pipe connected to a watersource to guide wash water into the tub, a detergent case provided tothe water supply pipe and receiving a detergent, and a valve provided tothe water supply pipe and the detergent case to determine a supplypassage of the wash water. With this configuration, when the washingmachine starts to operate, the valve is opened to supply wash water fromthe water source, and the detergent dissolved in the wash water issupplied together with the wash water into the tub.

Since the detergent case is retractably provided to the cabinet, thedetergent case is retracted outside the cabinet to provide a detergentto the detergent case before the washing operation.

In the conventional washing machine, a detergent receiving part of thedetergent case communicates with the water supply pipe so that all ofthe detergent received in the detergent case is supplied to the tub whenwash water is supplied to the detergent case. Thus, when the washingoperation is completed, the detergent in the detergent case iscompletely consumed, so that it is necessary to resupply a detergent tothe detergent case whenever a subsequent washing operation is initiated.

Therefore, there is a need to solve such problems of the conventionalwashing machine.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is conceived to solve such problems of the relatedart, and an aspect of the invention is to provide a washing machineincluding a large detergent case which enables a plurality of washingoperations by inputting a detergent once to the detergent case.

In accordance with an aspect of the invention, a washing machine havinga large detergent case includes: a detergent receiving part; a supplypipe communicating with a water supply pipe and supplying wash water; anon-off valve between the detergent receiving part and the supply pipe;and a controller opening or closing the on-off valve corresponding to aproceeding washing cycle to supply a preset amount of detergent to thesupply pipe.

The detergent receiving part may include a first receiving sectionreceiving a liquid detergent, a second receiving section partitionedfrom the first receiving section and receiving a fabric softener, and athird receiving section partitioned from the second receiving sectionand receiving a bleaching agent.

The detergent receiving part may have a hole formed in a bottom thereofand may communicate with the supply pipe through a connection pipe.Here, the connection pipe is connected at one end thereof with the holeand at the other end thereof with the supply pipe.

The on-off valve may be provided to the connection pipe.

The on-off valve may include three inlets communicating with the first,second and third receiving sections, respectively, and a single outletcommunicating with the supply pipe.

A connecting portion between the connection pipe and the supply pipe maybe located below the hole of the detergent receiving part.

The detergent receiving part may be provided at one side thereof with asingle-dose detergent receiving section partitioned from the detergentreceiving part and receiving a detergent. Here, the wash water issupplied to the single-dose detergent receiving section through a directwater pipe communicating with the water supply pipe.

The water supply pipe may be provided with a flow path control valveallowing the water supply pipe to communicate with the supply pipe andthe direct water pipe.

When the water supply pipe communicates with the supply pipe byoperation of the flow path control valve, the water supply pipe may beprevented from communicating with the direct water pipe.

When the water supply pipe communicates with the direct water pipe byoperation of the flow path control valve, the water supply pipe may beprevented from communicating with the supply pipe.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features and advantages of the inventionwill become apparent from the following detailed description inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of a washing machine including a largedetergent case in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a large detergent case of the washingmachine in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the large detergent case of the washing machinein accordance with the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 3; and

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the washing machine including the largedetergent case in accordance with the embodiment of the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of the invention will hereinafter be described in detailwith reference to the accompanying drawings. For descriptiveconvenience, a drum washing machine including a large detergent casewill be described as one example. It should be noted that the drawingsare not to precise scale and may be exaggerated in thickness of lines orsizes of components for descriptive convenience and clarity only.Furthermore, the terms as used herein are defined by taking functions ofthe invention into account and can be changed according to the custom orintention of users or operators. Therefore, definition of the termsshould be made according to the overall disclosures set forth herein.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 5, a washing machine including a large detergentcase according to an embodiment of the invention includes a tub 2disposed inside a cabinet 1 and receiving wash water, a drum 3 rotatablymounted inside the tub 2 and receiving laundry, a drive unit 4 disposedinside the cabinet 1 and connected to the drum 3 to rotate the drum 3, awater supply unit 10 supplying the wash water into the tub 2, and adischarge unit 7 discharging the wash water outside the cabinet 1 afterthe washing operation is completed.

Here, the water supply unit 10 includes a water supply pipe 30 connectedto a water source to guide wash water into the tub 2, and a detergentcase 20 communicating with the water supply pipe 30 and receiving adetergent.

In one embodiment, the large detergent case 20 includes a detergentreceiving part 24, a supply pipe 34 bifurcated from the water supplypipe 30 and supplying wash water, an on-off valve 50 between thedetergent receiving part 24 and the supply pipe 34, and a controller 80opening or closing the on-off valve 50 corresponding to a proceedingwashing cycle to supply a preset amount of detergent to the tub 2.

When the washing operation is started, the on-off valve 50 is open for apreset time in response to a signal from the controller 80 while washwater supplied from the water supply pipe 30 passes through the supplypipe 34, so that a preset amount of detergent flows into the supply pipe34 and is supplied into the tub 2 together with the wash water.

Here, since all of the detergent received in the detergent receivingpart 24 is not supplied to the tub 2, the detergent remains in a certainamount or more within the detergent receiving part 24 even after thewashing operation is completed.

As a result, the washing operation can be performed again as describedabove without separately inputting the detergent to the detergent case.

When the detergent receiving part 24 has a predetermined size or more,it is possible to perform a plurality of washing operations by supplyingthe detergent once to the detergent case.

The detergent receiving part 24 includes a first receiving section 24 areceiving a liquid detergent, a second receiving section 24 bpartitioned from the first receiving section 24 a and receiving a fabricsoftener, and a third receiving section 24 c partitioned from the secondreceiving section 24 b and receiving a bleaching agent

The plural receiving sections of the detergent receiving part 24 areconnected to the on-off valve 50 located under the detergent receivingpart 24. The on-off valve 50 is composed of a three-opening valve, whichhas three inlets communicating with the first, second and thirdreceiving sections 24 a, 24 b, 24 c and a single outlet communicatingwith the supply pipe 34. As a result, according to whether the on-offvalve 50 is open, the liquid detergent, fabric softener and bleachingagent respectively received in the first, second and third receivingsections 24 a, 24 b, 24 c are sequentially injected into the supply pipe34.

The detergent receiving part 24 has a hole 25 formed in the bottom ofeach of the receiving sections. That is, the first receiving section 24a is formed with a first hole 25 a, the second receiving section 24 b isformed with a second hole 25 b, and the third receiving section 24 c isformed with a third hole 25 c. The hole 25 is coupled to a connectionpipe 26 through which the detergent receiving part 24 communicates withthe supply pipe 34.

The connection pipe 26 is composed of upper connection pipes 26 a, 26 b,26 c and a lower connection pipe 26 d. Upper ends of the upperconnection pipes 26 a, 26 b, 26 c are connected to the first, second andthird holes 25 a, 25 b, 25 c, respectively, and a lower end of the lowerconnection pipe 26 d is connected to the supply pipe 34. A connectingportion between the lower connection pipe 26 d and the supply pipe 34 islocated below the hole 25 of the detergent receiving part 24 to allowthe detergent in the detergent receiving part 24 to be easily introducedinto the supply pipe 34.

The connection pipe 26 is provided with the on-off valve 50. Withreference to the on-off valve 50, upper portions of the connection pipe26 are referred to as the upper connection pipes 26 a, 26 b, 26 c and alower portion thereof is referred to as the lower connection pipe 26 d.

In one embodiment, in order to allow a user to input a detergent intothe detergent case each time before the washing operation, the washingmachine including the large detergent case further includes asingle-dose detergent receiving section 22 located at one side of thedetergent receiving part 24 to be partitioned therefrom and receiving adetergent, a direct water pipe 32 communicating at one thereof with thewater supply pipe 30 and at the other end thereof with the single-dosedetergent receiving section 22, a flow path control valve 40 provided tothe water supply pipe 30, and a selection key 70 for manipulation of theflow path control valve 40.

When a user manipulates the selection key 70 to use the detergent in thesingle-dose detergent receiving section 22, the flow path control valve40 is operated to allow wash water supplied along the water supply pipe30 to be supplied into the single-dose detergent receiving section 22through the direct water pipe 32. At this time, since the flow pathcontrol valve 40 allows the water supply pipe 30 to communicate with thedirect water pipe 32, the water supply pipe 30 is prevented fromcommunicating with the supply pipe 34. Accordingly, even in the casewhere wash water is supplied from the water supply pipe 30, the washwater is not supplied to the detergent receiving part 24 through thesupply pipe 34. On the contrary, when a user manipulates the selectionkey 70 to use a detergent in the detergent receiving part 24, the flowpath control valve 40 allows the water supply pipe 30 to communicateonly with the supply pipe 34, so that the wash water supplied throughthe water supply pipe 30 is supplied only to the detergent receivingpart 24.

The bottom surface of the single-dose detergent receiving section 22 isformed with a communication hole 23 a, which is connected to acommunication pipe 23, and the communication pipe 23 is connected to thesupply pipe 34, so that wash water flowing into the single-dosedetergent receiving section 22 is supplied together with the detergenttherein to the tub 2 through the supply pipe 34. When supply of thedetergent is completed, no detergent will remain in the single-dosedetergent receiving section 22, so that it is necessary to supply thedetergent again thereto for the next washing operation.

Therefore, the washing machine according to the embodiments can satisfyboth a user preferring the use of a liquid detergent and a userpreferring the use of a powder detergent.

Next, operation of the washing machine including the large detergentcase according to the embodiment will be described.

First, when performing a washing operation using a liquid detergent, auser opens the detergent case 20 to provide the liquid detergent, fabricsoftener, and bleaching agent to the first, second and third receivingsections 24 a, 24 b, 24 c, respectively, and then manipulates theselection key 70 to start the washing operation with the liquiddetergent.

When the washing operation is started, wash water is supplied along thewater supply pipe 30. Here, since the flow path control valve 40 allowsthe water supply pipe 30 to communicate with the supply pipe 34, thewash water flows into the tub 2 along the supply pipe 34.

Here, the on-off valve 50 is operated in response to a signal from thecontroller 80 such that the first receiving section 24 a is open tosupply the liquid detergent to the wash water supplied into the tub 2during a pre-washing stage and a main washing stage. Since the on-offvalve 50 is open for a preset period of time set by a manufacturer, apredetermined amount of liquid detergent will be supplied to laundry inthe drum.

Further, during a rinsing cycle, the first receiving section 24 a isclosed and the second and third receiving sections 24 b and 24 c areopen to supply the fabric softener and bleaching agent to washed laundryin the drum.

When the washing operation described above is completed, since theliquid detergent, fabric softener and bleaching agent remain in thedetergent receiving part 24, it is not necessary to supply additionalliquid detergent, fabric softener and bleaching agent to the detergentreceiving part 24 for the next washing operation.

When a user wants to perform a washing operation using a powderdetergent, the user opens the detergent case 20 before the washingoperation and provides the powder detergent to the single-dose detergentreceiving section 22. Then, when the washing operation is started, theflow path control valve 40 is operated in response to a signal from thecontroller 80. Here, the flow path control valve 40 allows the watersupply pipe 30 to communicate with the direct water pipe 32 so that washwater is supplied into the single-dose detergent receiving section 22through the direct water pipe 32. Then, the wash water dissolves thepowder detergent in the single-dose detergent receiving section 22 andthe dissolved detergent flows together with the wash water into the tub2 through the supply pipe 34 via the communication pipe 23.

Then, the washing machine performs the washing operation as describedabove, and, when the washing operation is completed, no powder detergentwill remain in the single-dose detergent receiving section 22.Therefore, it is necessary to provide the detergent to the detergentcase for the next washing operation.

As such, the embodiment of the invention provides the washing machineincluding a large detergent case that enables a plurality of washingoperations to be performed by inputting a detergent once to thedetergent case and can satisfy a user who prefers a washing operationusing a powder detergent.

According to the embodiment, the washing machine includes the on-offvalve between the detergent receiving part and the supply pipe to allowa preset amount of detergent to be supplied to wash water supplied intothe tub, so that the detergent in the receiving case can be divided intoa plurality of doses and supplied to the wash water numerous times,thereby reducing the number of detergent input operations.

Although some embodiments have been provided to illustrate the inventionin conjunction with the drawings, it will be apparent to those skilledin the art that the embodiments are given by way of illustration only,and that various modifications and equivalent embodiments can be madewithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Further,the description of the drum washing machine as provided herein is onlyone example of the invention, and the washing machine according to theinvention can be applied to other products. The scope of the inventionshould be limited only by the accompanying claims.

1. A washing machine including a large detergent case, comprising: adetergent receiving part; a supply pipe communicating with a watersupply pipe and supplying wash water; an on-off valve between thedetergent receiving part and the supply pipe; and a controller openingor closing the on-off valve corresponding to a proceeding washing cycleto supply a preset amount of detergent to the supply pipe.
 2. Thewashing machine according to claim 1, wherein the detergent receivingpart comprises: a first receiving section receiving a liquid detergent;a second receiving section partitioned from the first receiving sectionand receiving a fabric softener; and a third receiving sectionpartitioned from the second receiving section and receiving a bleachingagent.
 3. The washing machine according to claim 2, wherein thedetergent receiving part has a hole formed in a bottom thereof andcommunicates with the supply pipe through a connection pipe, theconnection pipe being connected at one end thereof with the hole and atthe other end thereof with the supply pipe.
 4. The washing machineaccording to claim 3, wherein the on-off valve is provided to theconnection pipe.
 5. The washing machine according to claim 4, whereinthe on-off valve comprises three inlets communicating with the first,second and third receiving sections, respectively, and a single outletcommunicating with the supply pipe.
 6. The washing machine according toclaim 5, wherein a connecting portion between the connection pipe andthe supply pipe is located below the hole of the detergent receivingpart.
 7. The washing machine according to claim 2, wherein the detergentreceiving part is provided at one side thereof with a single-dosedetergent receiving section partitioned from the detergent receivingpart and receiving a detergent, the wash water being supplied to thesingle-dose detergent receiving section through a direct water pipecommunicating with the water supply pipe.
 8. The washing machineaccording to claim 7, wherein the water supply pipe is provided with aflow path control valve allowing the water supply pipe to communicatewith the supply pipe and the direct water pipe.
 9. The washing machineaccording to claim 8, wherein when the water supply pipe communicateswith the supply pipe by operation of the flow path control valve, thewater supply pipe is prevented from communicating with the direct waterpipe.
 10. The washing machine according to claim 8, wherein when thewater supply pipe communicates with the direct water pipe by operationof the flow path control valve, the water supply pipe is prevented fromcommunicating with the supply pipe.